


Avengers x Reader Stories

by Evvy96



Series: Reader Insert [2]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, F/M, Friendship, Give me a prompt I'll write something for you, M/M, Mixed Relationships, No specified reader names, Parent/Child, Romance, Siblings, You choose your pairing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-17
Updated: 2017-01-04
Packaged: 2018-08-31 12:59:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 14,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8579500
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Evvy96/pseuds/Evvy96
Summary: I will write you a story pairing you, my darling Reader, with your favourite characters. You can choose romance, siblings, parent/child, or friendship. Just give me who you want to be paired with, what gender the Reader will be, and any details you'd like me to include. If you have the whole storyline/plot in your head, give it to me and I'll do my best to make you happy. No Smut in the fic, I'm not quite that good yet.





	1. Birthday Forgotten - Avengers Boys

y/n=your name  
e/c=eye colour  
s/c=skin colour  
n/n=nickname  
b/d-birthdate  
f/c=favourite colour  
d/l=dress length  
b/s=body shape  
f/f=favourite flower

*In this one-shot, you, my dear reader, have the power to control the elements

Reader’s POV

Today started out so great. I woke up with a smile on my face, a special message from FRIDAY, my heart leaping out of chest in anticipation for the day, and a spring in my step as I skipped into the kitchen. Today was my birthday, and even though it was my first ever birthday without any of my family with me, I was still excited to spend it with my second family; my team.

The first people I saw for the day was Sam, Steve and Bucky, who were sitting at the table with a coffee in their hands and, in Steve’s case, a newspaper in front of his face. I smiled at my friends, pouring myself a tea and grabbing my cereal, seating myself in front of the trio.

“Morning boys. Beautiful day isn’t it?” I chirped. Steve glanced up from his paper to give me a smile, Bucky gave me a brief hug, and Sam turned his head my way. “Morning (n/n). Yeah, I guess it is a nice day out. Perfect weather for the morning run we had just before.” I smiled again, starting to wonder if they had perhaps forgotten. “That’s nice Sammy. So, you guys got anything planned for today? Anything… special in mind?” Bucky gave me an odd look. “Nope. Nothing special planned. Just a regular day hanging out in the tower Common Room. Wanna join us?” My smile faltered. They forgot. “Oh, uh, no thanks, I’m good. I think I’ll go annoy Tony, Bruce and Loki or spar with Clint, Vision, Thor and Pietro. I’ll see you guys later I guess.”

They returned my farewell, and I quickly moved to the elevator, pressing the button for the training floor. Perhaps Clint, Piet and Vision had remembered. Natasha and Wanda were currently out of the country on a mission, so I knew it was a long shot that I would get any messages from them today, but before they left they promised they would celebrate with me as soon as they got back.

My hopes were dashed there too. All I had received was an offer to spar with them and an invite to maybe play some video games with them later. I declined, my spirits slowly falling further as I made my way to the lab. Surely Tony and Bruce hadn’t forgotten.

When I got to the lab, only Tony and Loki occupied the large room, Tony sitting with his head bent over his latest project idea blueprints and Loki leaning against the closest wall. “Hey Tony, Loki. Where’s Bruce? It’s kinda weird seeing the Science Bros split up with one in the lab.”

Tony’s head lifted from the schematics, a smile on his face. “Hey (y/n), Brucey is out on a coffee run. We’ve been at this since like 3am. What brings you down here babe?” My smile faltered again, but I covered it up before either man could notice. “Oh, just wanted to come down and see how my two favourite nerds and my favourite prankster were doing. You know you guys should really get more sunlight. You’re gonna start looking like Vampires you stay cooped up in here much longer.” Tony chuckled, “Yeah, you might be right there (y/n). We’ll have to look into getting out some more during the day. Now angel, you know I absolutely love you joining us down here for some fun sciencey experiments and making explosions of pretty colours, but Bruce and I are about to start testing a pretty dangerous prototype, and I wouldn’t dream of putting your pretty face in harm’s way. I’ll call you down as soon as we’re done and we can have some fun later okay?”

My face completely fell at that. Even Tony and Loki forgot my birthday, and it seemed like Bruce had too. Not one of the guys remembered. My heart broke clean in half. “Oh, no, sure.” I stated quickly, trying to keep my voice from breaking. “You guys have fun. Call me down when you’re done. We’ll, uh, we’ll mix together some chemicals and create some cool effects. Yeah, okay, bye Tony.”

After leaving the lab I made my way up to my room. It was late afternoon at this point, so most of my birthday had passed me by without a single reason to really celebrate. I changed into some loose cotton pants and a baggy t-shirt before curling up on my bed, letting my façade break down and the tears spill from my eyes, my sobs, chocking my breaths and jolting my entire body. I missed my family, wishing they were here to make me feel loved, cause at the moment, I didn’t feel that at all.

\------------------------

After what seemed like forever, I heard a knock at my door, followed by Bruce’s voice, asking if he could come in. I cleared my throat and called out that he could open the door, and wiped my eyes as he opened the door. Maybe someone had finally remembered.

“Hey (y/n). I came up to ask if you wanted to join me and Tony in the lab. He said you came down earlier to hang out, and we’re done testing out the dangerous stuff, so he sent me up to get you.” Of course he didn’t remember. What was I thinking, hoping he, of all people would?

“Uh, no thanks Bruce, I’m not feeling too good, so I’m just gonna try and get to sleep early. Don’t wanna be getting sick now do I?” Bruce seemed to hear the croak in my voice, then I saw his eyes sweep over my face, noticing my undoubtedly red, puffy eyes. “Are you okay? You look like you’ve been crying.” “Yeah I’m fine. Just thinking about my family is all. I miss them, ya know.” “well do you want me to stay and keep you company? I haven’t got anything else I need to do today, we can sit in bed and snuggle, watch some movies. What’dya say?”

My heart shattered  a little more at his words. “No thanks. I’m all good. I just, um, need some time to myself. I’ll be fine, really. You can go back down to Tony. I’ll, um, I’ll see you tomorrow okay?” He looked like he wanted to say something, but let the matter go, placing a kiss on my head and leaving me to my own thoughts again.

What a crappy birthday.

2nd Person POV

Bruce stood outside (y/n)’s bedroom door, frowning. Something else was going on with her, he could tell. He made his way downstairs to the Common Room, where all of the boys were sitting watching a football game. “Hey guys, did any of you notice something off with (y/n) today?” he asked, grabbing everyone’s attention.

Steve, Sam and Bucky all shook their heads. “Nah man, she was all smiles and rainbows this morning at breakfast. Haven’t seen her since though.” Sam responded, his brow furrowing, wondering exactly WHY he hadn’t see the perky (h/c) head during the day. “Same here,” Pietro called out, “she came to zhe training room earlier today smiling, said somezhing about vhat ve had planned for today, zhen left.” Vision and Clint echoed their agreement with Pietro’s statement. “Well I just went to see her. Tony promised after we finished working on our prototype she could come down and hang with us, but she was all curled up in bed already. She had been crying, said she was thinking about her family, but what was weird is she turned me down when I offered to spend the night cuddling with her and watching movies.”

The rest of the guys shared a worried look. (Y/n) never turned down the opportunity to cuddle with any of them, no matter how she was feeling. It was her favourite thing to do next to playing small pranks on them. And they had noticed before, the day that had started out so beautiful had turned dark and cold, a rain storm coming out of nowhere. They realised then it was (y/n)’s powers reacting to her emotions. “Wow, that’s unusual. Maybe we should go see if she’s okay.” Steve suggested, only for Bruce to shake his head. “She said she just wanted to be left alone for the night. Hopefully she’ll be better by the morning.” They all agreed they would check on her after breakfast the next morning if she hadn’t made an appearance by then, then made their ways to their own floors for some rest.

The following morning had all of the boys more concerned than the previous night. Steve, who’s floor was just above (y/n)’s, had spent the majority of the night listening to her cry, her sobs pushing through the layer separating their floors and echoing in his ears thanks to his Super Soldier enhanced hearing. She had finally fallen asleep at around 4 in the morning, and Steve had snuck down to her room to see tears staining her delicate (s/c) skin, her cheeks red and her pillow transparent from the amount of tears she had shed. The rain continued outside, pouring from the sky and not showing any signs of clearing up any time soon. They agreed to let her sleep, voting to check on her later in the afternoon once they could be sure she’d had a lest a good 8 hours of sleep.

When it was just past noon, the boys were gathered around the television again, a movie playing but none of them really paying attention to it. Their heads turned as the elevator doors opened, hoping (y/n) had woken and come down to join them, back to her normal, cheerful self. Instead they were met with the puffed out, soaked to the bone figures of Natasha and Wanda, rushing into the room and scanning the bodies, obviously not finding (y/n) amongst the crowd.

“Hey, how was yesterday, did (y/n) have a good day? What’d you guys get up to for her?” Natasha panted, clutching at her side and attempting to wring out her hair. The other two female Avengers had booked it from the Meeting Room after Fury had debriefed them, wanting to spend the rest of the day with (y/n) to make up for not getting home in time for her birthday.

The guys shared a look of confusion. “Uh, yesterday was okay I guess?” Bucky responded warily. Something was going on, something only the girls seemed to be aware of. “I think (y/n) had an okay day, She was pretty cheery in the morning, but she started feeling a little down in the evening. Said she was missing her family, went to bed early and everything.” Bruce stated.

Natasha and Wanda shared a look, their faces portraying something that resembled a mixture of sadness, annoyance and anger. “You guys DO know what yesterday was, right?” Natasha asked, almost daring them to give her the answer she feared they had. “Um, no?” Vision responded, trying his very best not to cower away from the glare he and the others were receiving from the girls. “What, was it the anniversary of the accident? I thought that was a couple months ago?” Steve asked.

Natasha’s heart sank as she turned to her friend, her expression shocked. “Oh God, zhey forgot.” Wanda stated, devastated. “(Y/n) is probably crushed, sitting in her room, heartbroken.”

“Okay seriously, what was yesterday?!” Tony exclaimed. “What could possibly be so important about yesterday that Has Mother Nature all sulky in her room?” He hadn’t meant for it to come out so rude, but he, along with the rest of the guys, felt pretty annoyed that they were obviously missing something. “Well TONY” Natasha practically snarled, “yesterday was, as you so eloquently named her, was Mother Nature’s BIRTHDAY! First one without any blood relatives around too. In case you forgot, her cousin died four months ago on a mission, leaving her without a single member of her family left.”

There was dead silence. Natasha and Wanda were fuming, not believing that EVERY SINGLE ONE of the boys had forgotten their friend’s birthday. The boys jaws had dropped. “Th-that’s not possible. Her birthday is-“ “(B/d). Also known as YESTERDAY Loki.” Wanda sneered over Loki’s feeble stuttering. “Fuck.” Steve swore, though everyone was too shocked to notice the out of character statement.

“You guys are UNBELIEVABLE!!” Natasha started screaming. “AFTER EVERYHTING THAT BEAUTIFUL GIRL DOES FOR ALL OF YOU, YOU FORGET THE MOST IMPORTANT DAY EVER?! I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU!” Wanda took over at this. “HOW COULD YOU BOYS BE SO INSENSITIVE?! SHE IS THERE FOR YOU GUYS NO MATTER WHAT THE SITUATION. HELL, SHE ONCE BROKE EVERY ASGARDIAN RULE SET IN PLACE BECAUSE YOU WERE FALSELY IMPRISONED LOKI! SHE ALMOST DIED MORE THAN ONCE DIVING IN FRONT OF A SHOT MEANT FOR ONE OF US BECAUSE WE WEREN’T LOOKING! HOW MANY TIMES HAS SHE SAID SHE CAN’T IMAGINE HER LIFE WITHOUT ONE OF YOU! WHO BELIEVED IN YOU NO MATTER WHAT YOUR PAST WAS BUCKY?! WHO DIDN’T LEAVE YOUR SIDE ONCE AS YOU SLOWLY ADJUSTED TO THE NEW WORLD STEVE?!”

The boys slowly cowered under the dagger-sharp gazes of the two women in front of them. Clint and Steve were like father-figures to Wanda, but at that moment, they felt like mere little boys who were being reprimanded by their mother as she glared at them.

“Okay, you know what? I can’t even look at any of you right now. I’m going to go and see (y/n), make sure she hasn’t become dehydrated from the amount I just know she’s cried. You had better find a way to fix this, or none of you will be able to stop me from making sure you never, EVER reproduce.” Natasha growled, making each of the boys shiver at the thought. She and Wanda turned away from the room, making their way back to the elevator.

When the two women approached their friend’s door, their hearts broke to hear sniffles and soft sobs coming from inside the room. Natasha slowly opened the door, peaking in to see (y/n) still curled up in her bed, her hair a knotted mess from her night of tossing and turning and her shoulders shaking from her suppressed sobs. Both she and Wanda quietly slipped into the room, approaching the bed and sitting on the edge whilst placing a hand each on (y/n)’s back. She turned to see her friends, her eyes red and puffy from hours of sobbing and tear marks staining her cheeks.

“Oh sveetheart.” Wanda cooed. “Ve are so sorry ve missed your special day. Ve tried so hard to get home in time, but ve just couldn’t.” “W-Wanda? N-N-Nat? W-When did y-you guys g-get home?” (Y/n) spoke, her voice breaking and stuttering as she attempted to control her sobs. “Not too long ago babochka. We just had to make a quick stop and dismember the boys for what they did to you. Do you wanna talk about it?” Nat asked, raising a hand to stroke her friend’s hair. (Y/n) just shook her head, tears spilling from her eyes once again. Honestly she was surprised she had any left to shed. She had been crying since early last night. She slid to the middle of her bed, allowing room for Nat and Wanda to cuddle up to her on each side, sandwiching her between them and wrapping their arms around her shaking frame and resting their heads beside hers. They stayed like that for a few hours, waiting for (y/n)’s cries to finally subside. When she was finally able to sit up and wipe her eyes, Wanda spoke up, “C’mon anđeo, let’s go out to celebrate. Ve promised after all, and ve don’t like to break promises. Nat and I even bought you a beautiful dress you can vear tonight. Ve saw it in a Venice market and couldn’t help but buy it for you.”

A few more hours had passed, and (y/n) was putting on the finishing touches to her makeup. The dress Natasha and Wanda had bought her was truly beautiful. It was (d/l) and (f/c), simple yet accentuating her (b/s) figure in all the right places. The sizing was absolutely perfect and matched her favourite jewellery set to a T. She smiled at herself, her (e/c) eyes shining with happiness for the first time in over 24 hours. The red had almost completely disappeared and thanks to her skills with makeup, you could barely see any traces of puffiness around her face. Her (s/c) skin practically glowed as she stepped out of her bathroom to greet Natasha and Wanda, who were both as elegantly dressed as her. “Well, what do you think? Do I look okay?” “Divan!” “Oglushayushchiy!” they both replied. (Y/n) chuckled. “In English please? I only speak English and a little Italian.” They both laughed and, almost simultaneously, responded with “Stunning!” “Okay, I made Tony hand over one of his credit cards, so we’re going to one of the best night clubs in New York. We’re gonna drink, dance and have a great night and not pay a single dime.” Natasha smirked evilly. (Y/n) and Wanda laughed at their friend, before the three girls  left the bedroom and headed for the elevator. FRIDAY informed them that there was a limo waiting to take them to their destination and that all of the males had already retired for the night.

When they arrived at the club the music was pouring out of the doors and windows, the bass making the ground around the building vibrate. The girls giggled as they made their way through the front door and up the stairs to the top floor.

(Y/n) pushed open the heavy door to be met with a loud chorus of “SURPRISE!!!” as she walked in. Her eyes widened at the sight of a ginormous banner that stretched across the room, large block lettering spelling out ‘WE’RE SORRY/HAPPY LATE BIRTHDAY’ and, standing underneath it in their best dancing outfits, were Tony, Steve, Clint, Bucky, Sam, Pietro, Thor, Loki, Vision and Bruce.

Her eyes filled with tears as she looked upon her friends, her hear swelling with the love they were showing through, not only the smiles on their faces, but the bunches of (f/f) in each of their hands. The music hummed softly in the background as (y/n) walked towards her friends, tears starting to slip from her eyes once again, only this time, from happiness. Thank God for water-proof makeup.

“(N/n), we are so, so, SO SO SO sorry we forgot about your birthday. We know it doesn’t make up for what we did, but we just want you to know we love you.” Steve said as he walked forward, placing a kiss on her cheek and the flowers in her arms. “You’re always there for us, no matter what the situation, and none of us can believe how selfish we were to forget about the best day of our lives; the day you were born.” Bucky continued, also placing flowers in her hand and a kiss on her cheek. “Without that day, there would be no you, and we can’t have that.” Tony repeated the action. “Who would we have to cuddle without any objections?” Bruce followed. “Or play pranks with?” Loki stated. “Or give piggy back rides to?” Pietro approached. “Or talk to in the early hours of the morning?” Vision questioned. “Who would come on morning runs with me to keep me company whilst the Super Nuts lapped me repeatedly?” Sam asked, causing (y/n) to laugh. “Who would accompany my thunder with all the rain to make my travels between Midgard and Asgard seem like approaching storms and make it easy for me to arrive unnoticed?” Thor proclaimed as he approached (y/n). “And, finally, who would we possibly have to love with all our hearts, unconditionally and unendingly? We love you so much (n/n), and we hope you can forgive us.” Clint finished up, the final bunch of flowers being placed in her arms and one last kiss to her now flushed cheeks.

“You guys, I… I don’t know what to say. This is the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me. Of course I forgive you. I could never stay mad at you. You made a mistake, and as long as you fixed it, everything is going to be fine. Thank you so much.” (y/n) cried, tears flowing down her face as she walked up to and hugged the life out of each of her boys. “I love you guys with all my heart. Thanks for making my day special, even if it was a little late.”

With the problem set behind them, the DJ turned up the music, followed by the lights changing colour and illuminating the room like a rainbow. The Avengers danced the night away, and (y/n) couldn’t have been happier that she got to celebrate a special night with the most special people I her life.


	2. Trigger - Bucky

y/n=your name  
y/f/n=your full name  
e/c=eye colour  
n/n=nickname  
s/c=skin colour

*This is a gender neutral plotline. I will not be using any specific gender references so it can be read by/for everyone. Warning, this is a little violent; mentions of blood and slight gore. Read, enjoy, review and request my angels. <3

 

The battle had been raging for over an hour. The Avengers were outnumbered thirty-to-one in their latest battle against HYDRA, yet each of the nine members present found themselves handling, what they had initially thought to be a covert in-and-out intel assignment, quite well. Clint and Natasha stood side by side atop an enemy talk, bullets, knives and arrows flying around the large vehicle. Bruce, Hulked out and raging wherever he felt like enacting his rage, was dealing with the enemy agents just fine, HYDRA not having time to grow the extra two heads as the Big Guy crushed them left, right and centre. Thor bounced around the battlefield taking down enemy vehicles, minus the tank Nat and Clint occupied, making it easier to avoid the gunfire that sprayed from the machine guns attached to each Jeep that approached the team of heroes. Falcon flew overhead, releasing the razor-sharp feathers from his flight suit in rapid succession as he spied groups of HYDRA agents sneaking up on his teammates. Steve stood back-to-back with Tony, the billionaire firing repulsor beams in a semi-circle whilst Steve put his shield to use boomeranging the it throughout the surrounding agents and physically halting anyone who got close enough to enable the use of his fists.

The best duo by far, however, was Bucky and (y/n). They worked together flawlessly, using each other’s strengths to strengthen their own individual attacks, keeping minimal space between them as they circled around the surrounding team of rival agents to avoid losing one another in the battle. (Y/n) had the power to control the elements, meaning they could easily summon any natural weapon they saw fit; a stray root wrapping around an ankle here, a strong gust of wind that seemingly came from nowhere and blew multiple agents off their feet there, and a jet of water powerful enough to knock the air out of a person’s lungs barrelling through a string of agents that almost seemed lined up to take a shot at (y/n). Bucky used each of (y/n)’s attacks as distractions to give himself enough time to sneak up behind the enemy and knock them to the ground and prevent them from getting up, at least until SHIELD came in to arrest them. If he could, Bucky actively avoided ending any lives, not wanting to add another streak of red to his already scarlet ledger. The Soldier’s Vibranium arm allowed him to rush through his partner’s elemental attacks with ease, shielding himself from the fire and water, trusting them not to accidentally wrap a stray root or vine around his calf.

The fight was nearing an end around the pair, the mass of agents littering the floor unconscious or too damaged to even attempt getting up. As the last HYDRA agent hit the floor, (y/n) turned to face Bucky a few feet away, a blinding smile that lit up their (e/c) eyes being shot in his direction. Bucky smiled back, failing to notice the agent behind him lifting his head from the ground and uttering a few words in Russian, loud enough for both Bucky and (y/n) to hear and making their blood run cold. _печь_ _(Furnace)_. Bucky froze in his spot.

 _Доброкачественный_ _(Benign)_. (Y/n)’s smile disappeared, a look of horror quickly taking its place of their face.

 _Ржавые_ _(Rusted)_. Bucky was shaking his head.

 _Один_ _(One)_. (Y/n) was pushing their body to move forward, to shut the agent up before they finished.

 _Рассвет_ _(Daybreak)_. Bucky screamed in pain, hunching over and falling to the ground.

 _Д евять_ _(Nine)_. Bucky fought with himself, shaking his head and trying to regain control of his body.

 _страстное желание_ _(Longing)_. (Y/n) started running. They were further away from Bucky and the agent than they’d thought.

 _Семнадцать_ _(Seventeen)_. Bucky clutched at his head, screaming for them to stop.

 _Возвращение домой_ _(Homecoming)_. “NO!” (Y/n) reached for their spare gun. _Грузовой автомобиль_ _(Freight Car)_. A shot rang through the air, the agent’s head falling back to the ground, blood spilling from the bullet shaped hole in his head, but the damage was done. Bucky opened his eyes, cold and hard as steel. The Winter Soldier was back.

(Y/n) started backing away slowly to avoid attracting The Winter Soldier’s attention. They reached a hand to their ear, tuning in to the rest of the team. “Steve, we’ve got a problem.” “Can it wait? I’m still a little busy here.” They heard the Super Soldier’s laboured breaths as he threw his shield in a hook movement, a resounding clang coming through the link. “Yeah, just cause you and Barnes are done, doesn’t mean the rest of us are. A little help would be nice you know.” Tony smart mouthed, getting his two cents in. “Now’s so not the time Stark. Steve, Bucky has been triggered. I need help down here.” “What?” Steve was confused by (y/n)’s words, “I thought we had all that dealt with. No other agent should know those words.” “I thought that too. We burned the book and helped retrain Bucky’s brain to reject the triggers but somehow one of the agents knew them and recited every single one of them before I could stop him, and somehow they’ve turned Buck back into the Winter Soldier. So a little help would be greatly appreciated, like, NOW WOULD BE NICE!” (Y/n) was starting to get scared. They’d dealt with the Winter Soldier before, sure, but that was when they were training Bucky to block out all parts of his life related to his time at HYDRA. It had been over a year since the last time any of that had affected Bucky, and they had no idea how to handle it in the field. “I’ll be there as soon as possible (y/n). Try and cancel out the triggers like we used to. I’m coming.”

The Soldier had noticed (y/n) at this point, standing straight and walking forward with a purpose, and (y/n) had a feeling it wasn’t a very friendly purpose. They switched to a defensive pose, knowing it would do little but using it for a little confidence boost. “Your name is James Buchanan Barnes. Your friends call you Bucky. You were a leading officer in the Howling Commandos in the 40’s.” The Winter Soldier swung their metal fist in a hook, making full impact with (y/n)’s shoulder and sending them flying to the floor, but they jumped up quickly, rolling their shoulder and clicking it back into place keeping defensive position. “You are an Avenger. You were once the Winter Soldier.” Another punch to the gut from the Winter Soldier’s flesh hand followed by a sweep of his leg had (y/n) twisting into a crouch and a hand clutching their stomach, breath knocked from their lungs. “H-He no longer has control over your life. Y-Your best friend is Ste-Steven Grant Ro-gers.” The words were broken up, but (y/n) was surprised they could even manage to complete the sentence, having to grunt out the last word in a stutter. “My name is (y/f/n). I helped you block out the triggers. I’m one of your best friends.” The Winter Soldier pushed (y/n) backwards, straddling their lap as they fell to the ground on their back, his knees pressing their wrists into the dirt below them, much like they did in sparring. The reverse triggers hadn’t worked, but (y/n) decided to try one more time.

“Your name is James Buchanan Barnes. Your friends call you Bucky. You were a leading officer in the Howling Commandos in the 40’s. You are an Avenger. You were once the Winter Soldier. He no longer has control over your life. Your best friend is-“ (Y/n)’s airways were cut off as the Winter Soldier wrapped his hands around their throat, slowly applying pressure to cut off all air supply. They had to hurry. “Steven Grant Rogers. My name is (y/f/n), and I l-ove with y-you, Ja-James Buchanan B-Barnes.”

Just as the world started going black, the Soldier blinked, the blue eyes softening. Bucky was back. His eyes widened as he realised what he was doing, and ripped his hands away from (y/n)’s neck, allowing them to sharply inhale the much-needed oxygen and coughing violently as they turned onto their side. This action threw Bucky off them, allowing him to sit next to them and pulling them, up to help their breathing. Steve rushed forward, the rest of the team not too far behind as they ran towards the pair sitting in the dirt amidst unconscious HYDRA agents. “Steve! Help (y/n)! I-I-I almost-“ “I know Buck, I know.” Steve cut him off before he could start panicking. “Don’t worry (y/n) is gonna be just fine. I’m gonna help them back to the Quinjet, and Natasha is gonna look you over before she brings you down too.” That said, he quickly swooped (y/n) into his arms and carried them back the way he had come.

It had been over a week since the mission, and Bucky had been avoiding (y/n) at every turn. The fact that he had not run into them once was actually quite impressive, consider both lived in the Tower and (y/n)’s injuries had been so minor they had been up and walking around within a day.

“I don’t understand it Steve. He didn’t do anything serious. I’m here, alive and virtually unharmed. If I’m healthy enough to be here sparring with you right now, why is Bucky still ignoring me? He won’t answer my calls, he won’t permit me entrance into his room, he won’t even eat meals the same time as the rest of us. Hell, I couldn’t even break into his room through the vents. Clint tried, and he’s blocked them all up somehow. What do I do? How can I get him to talk to me again?” “I honestly can’t help you there (y/n).” Steve huffed as he threw another kick their way, (y/n) blocking it with ease and sweeping their leg out, pinning Steve to the mat and trapping his wrists above his head. “You’re getting better at this. Never pinned me that quickly before.” He smiled, getting a small smile in return as he was released and (y/n) walked away from the mats. “Buck feels real bad about hurting you, and he doesn’t wanna face you knowing he coulda killed you without even blinking.” “But he didn’t, that’s my point. I snapped him out of it before he could do something that’d kill him.” “Yeah I know. We all heard you over the comms. You know, it’d kill him more than you think it would (n/n). He really cares about you.” “Course he does. I’m one of his best friends. But when I told him I loved him, I meant it in a completely different way than he must think. I don’t love him Steve, I’m **in** love with him. There’s no way he feels that way about me.” Steve smiled at his friend. “You’d be surprised. But if you really wanna talk to him, now’s your chance.”

(Y/n) spun on their heels, seeing Bucky pale as he walked into the training room and laid eyes on his two best friends. He debated turning around and walking back out, but he knew (y/n) would just follow him, and he wasn’t fast enough to avoid them forever. “Uh… Hey.” “Hey.”

Steve’s eyes shifted between his friends, a knowing smile on his face as he gathered his towel and gym bag before strolling out the room and commanding FRIDAY to lock the door until they were finished.

The space was so awkward and tense; a butter knife could cut through. Finally (y/n) broke the silence. “How’re you doing Buck? Everything okay after last week?” That seemed to snap something in Bucky. “How the hell do you think I’m doing (y/n)? I almost killed you without even blinking. Those words weren’t supposed to work on me anymore, yet still a simple list of words wiped my mind and turned me into an unstoppable killing machine. I remember everything I did to you. I dislocated your shoulder-“ “Which I popped back in instantly.” (Y/n) cut in quickly. “I punched you in the gut and knocked the air out of you-“ “Missing my ribs and only leaving a bruised torso.” “And I choked you until you were almost dead.” “Which I’m not. All that happened was a bruised neck and my voice being a little rough and scratchy for a few days. I don’t blame you for any of that Bucky. It wasn’t your fault. We had no idea that any more of HYDRA knew your triggers, and we didn’t account for what would happen in that kind of situation.” “But you should blame me (y/n)! You could. Have. DIED!” Bucky started shouting. “But. I. DIDN”T!” (Y/n) shouted back. “Why is that so hard for you to grasp James?” he flinched at the use of his first name. It always sounded so weird coming from anyone but Steve, and even then it was only when his best friend was REALLY mad. “It is quite clear that I am perfectly fine now, and I’m getting sick and _tired_ of you constantly avoiding me. It’s not the first time I’ve been hurt on their field, and it most certainly will not be the last. I’m an adult Barnes, I can look after myself.” Bucky growled, “That’s not the point (n/n)! I’m dangerous, okay? I can’t let you, or anyone else near me cause as soon as I get close to someone something goes wrong and I either kill them or just lose them. And… I can’t lose you. I just can’t.” His voice had quietened by the end of his small rant. “I love you (y/n), and I can’t imagine my life without you anymore. When you brought me back by telling me you love me, I was shocked. I couldn’t even dream that you would fall for someone like me. I’m damaged and I’m dangerous, and I don’t deserve someone as amazing as you as a friend, let alone as something more.”

(Y/n) was stunned. Bucky love them. Like, actually felt the same way as they did about him. They ran forward and crashed their lips against his, effectively stopping any other words Bucky had planned on spewing out.

The kiss lasted a good few moments, before their need for air broke them apart, keeping their foreheads touching lightly. “When will you learn that I don’t pay attention to what’s dangerous or care about what’s damaged? You’ve known me for how long now? If I want something, it’s not getting away from me anytime soon. I love you Bucky, damage, danger and everything else.” Bucky smiled softly, “Well then, rest assured you ain’t getting’ away from me any time soon either babe. What do you say we go upstairs and grab a bite to eat?” “I thought you’d never get the balls to ask.” (Y/n) teased, a smirk quirking their lip up on one side, followed by a shriek when Bucky moved his hands to their side, lightly dancing across the most sensitive ticklish spots and starting one of their most epic tickle fight/sparring match yet.


	3. Belong - Steve

y/n=your name  
e/c=eye colour  
l/n=last name  
s/c=skin colour  
n/n=nickname

*This happens after the events of Age Of Ultron*  
*Swearing*  
*Violence and Mild Gore*

“You put everyone in danger!'  
“I saved your ass! The only person in danger was the idiot HYDRA agent who thought sneaking up behind Captain America when he doesn’t have someone right on his six was a good idea. You’d think they would have learnt, the amount of times I’ve kicked their asses based off just that train of thought.”  
“That is _not_ the point (y/n). I’m grateful you covered my six when I lost my concentration, but the way you did it was irresponsible and if the team had lost you the mission would have been pointless and we _all_ would have been compromised.”

“Oh my God, are they still going at each other’s throats? We got back from the mission like 5 hours ago and they started before we even left the HYDRA bunker.” Clint whined as he walked from the kitchen to the common room, a tray of hot chocolate held in front of him for the rest of the Avengers to grab a mug. It was tradition for the team to gather in the common room of the Tower and watch a movie together after a mission, like a de-stressing exercise of sorts. Each person took their turns choosing a movie, and tonight was (y/n)’s. Being a lover of both Disney and Musicals, she had chosen a classic that was loved by everyone on the team, Pinocchio. But instead of being curled up on the couch wedged between Tony and Natasha – her usual spot – she was in the middle of a screaming match with Captain Steve Rogers over the results of the mission in question. (Y/n) had jumped in front of a shot a HYDRA agent had sent when Steve’s back was turned. She had come away unharmed of course, her power creation ability generating a force field with milliseconds to spare, but Steve had lost his cool the moment the mission had ended and they had boarded the Quinjet to return to New York. The pair had been arguing back and forth for almost 7 hours, with short breaks in between for (y/n) to rest from the amount of energy she had used to reach Steve’s back and generate her shield. The team listened to them ramble on, occasionally rolling their eyes and huffing out a frustrated sigh.  
“(Y/n)’s too proud to admit her feelings, she think Cap hates her, so she covers up the hurt by being snippy and fighting back when he tells her off.” Natasha explained as she made her way to Bruce’s side.  
“Ha! That’s funny. Steve is exactly the same. Fights with her all day but our morning runs are filled with how much he just wished where they went wrong and if I think she could ever actually like him.” Sam laughed.

“The sooner they stop covering up their feelings with arguments, the sooner this stupid headache goes away.” Tony piped up his place of the couch, a cold cloth pressed to his head. “How are you not even the lightest shade of green, Banner? Surely the Big Guy has had enough of their little dance, right.”  
Bruce grunted from across the room in his armchair, one arm around Nat as she snuggled into his side and rested her head against his shoulder. “I have an amazing girlfriend to give me a reason to stay calm, and Wanda is keeping the Other Guy at bay.” He shot the newest member of the team a small smile and a wink, making her giggle softly and Tony stare at her with a look of offense. “Oh come _on_ Maximoff. I’m dying over here. Help a guy out.”  
“I am. I’m helping everyone stay safe by keeping Bruce’s alter ego away from the light. You got a nasty knock to the head from Tash cause you were being an idiot on the ride back. You deserve what you get for trying to poke the bear under Banner’s skin.” Wanda smirked as Tony rolled his eyes and groaned, emitting a chuckle from Natasha and a chortle from Sam and Rhodey.

The relatively peaceful moment was short lived, as (y/n) and Steve had moved their screaming match to the common room where they all sat. Everyone’s attention was directed towards them, not wanting to miss a moment. They all had a feeling something was about to go wrong, and they needed to be completely alert for who they’ll need to chew out for it.

“I’m putting you on desk duty for the next three missions. I don’t care how long it takes for those three missions to happen, you don’t get to be on the team for three of them. I’m sick of you thinking you can get away with going against my plans just because you can create whatever power you want.”  
“Jesus Christ Rogers!” (y/n) shouted, waving her arms out to emphasise how exhausted she was just by being near him, “What is your problem?”  
“My problem is that you don’t belong here! You’re not fit to be an Avenger and I honestly don’t know what Fury was thinking when he put you on the team!” There it was. The big stuff up. The team watched as (y/n)’s eyes widened in shock for a few moments, before the (e/c) orbs hardened and her whole figure stiffened. “ _Fine_! You know what? I’m _done_! I joined this team because I believed I would be making a difference in the world, but I _refuse_ to stay somewhere I’m not valued and treated like this every other day. Good luck saving your own ass next time you’re not paying attention on a mission! I’m going on my mission in two days and when I get back, I’ll pack up my things and be out of here before you even know I’ve been back! _I QUIT_!”  
With those words, (y/n) turned away from Steve and made her way to the elevator.  
“I’m sorry? Were my orders not clear? You’re not going on the next 3 missions (l/n). You might as well start packing up now.”  
“I just quit you asshole! You’re not my Captain anymore, I don’t have to take _any_ orders from you. And this mission was assigned to me by Fury, so you wouldn’t have a say in that even if you wanted to! Butt out Rogers!”

When the elevator had disappeared from sight, taking an extremely pissed off SunStar with it, Steve turned and noticed the room full of his other team mates, each and every one of them sending him an Icecap Melting glare.  
“What the actual fuck Capsicle?” Tony asked casually, “Did you seriously just cost us a teammate cause she saved your butt _again_?”  
The reality of the situation sunk in with Steve, his eyes widening and his face paling. “Oh God, what did I just do? She’s gonna leave me- I mean us. What have I done? I-I need to go talk to her. Apologise, tell her not to leave-“  
“Don’t you even think about it Rogers!” Natasha interrupted, “You just broke that woman’s heart and basically sent her packing. Not only is now the wrong time to try and talk to her, but I will not hesitate to castrate if you go anywhere near her until she comes back from her mission. She needs time to cool off, and you need time to think about how your stubbornness and pride got in the way of the best thing you could ever have had. Don’t even think about giving me bullshit about how you don’t know what I’m talking about, I know how you feel about her and let me tell you, she feels the same way. Well, I don’t know if that’s true now, since you’ve just crushed her spirit, but you would have had a real shot, even just five minutes ago.” With those words hanging in the air, she strode over to the elevator, summoning it back down to go and check on her friend, Wanda silently joining her.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been a month since that night, and (y/n) was strolling through the halls of the HYDRA base Fury had assigned her to infiltrate. She had refused to let Tash and Wanda in her room whilst she had packed for the mission, knowing they would try to convince her to go talk to Steve before she left. She had kept in contact with them if she had the chance; a quick phone call to check up on everyone, see how the boys were doing. The mission had been going well, her reports were providing SHIELD with a great deal of previously unknown intel, building a steady file of all HYDRA’s plans and base schematics.

Today, something was different, all of the senior officers talking about a weapon being taken out for a special mission. (Y/n) had managed to eavesdrop on a conversation, her eyes widening and her heart stopping at what she heard.  
“When will they bring him out of cryo? I want to be able to watch him kill that Spangly good-for-nothing.” Steve. Oh God not again.  
“They pulled him out this morning. He’s been fighting the brain wash, so they’re still trying to wipe him so we don’t have a repeat of last time. The Soldier hasn’t been complying ever since his last encounter with the Captain. He keeps remembering little things that piece together and gives him a reason to fight. We lost 5 agents when we tried to put him under last time.” Bucky was fighting. This was a good sign. It meant he was remembering Steve and would need help seeking him out. (Y/n) slunk away from the guards and made her way to the room HYDRA usually did their mind wiping. Sure enough, there was Bucky, metal arm strapped into a clamp and strapped to a device as he struggled to pull himself away from the scientists rushing around him. Thinking on her feet, she opened the door and strode in, switching to the commander persona she carried when she was around HYDRA followers.  
“I’ve been instructed by Rumlow to take the Soldier to another facility. We have a more advanced machine that may assist in the wipe.”  
The scientists didn’t question her, releasing Bucky from his restraints and cuffing his hands behind his back for transportation. When they handed him over, (y/n) made quick work of making a swift exit through the front doors to her motorcycle. Bucky hadn’t struggled, and (y/n) held on to the hope that he remembered her from their encounter a few months ago and knew she was trying to help him.

As she was un-cuffing Bucky’s hands, a siren blared throughout the clearing where the HYDRA base was located. Agents were flooding out of the exits and searching the grounds, and (y/n) caught sight of a small group led by Rumlow himself heading their way. She quickly input the address for the Avengers Training Base and gave Bucky a basic education as to how to operate the bike. “I’m going to hold them off as long as I can and give you a head start. Go to the address I’ve put in, follow the voice that will tell you where to go. Find Steve when you get there and tell him what happened, say that (y/n) sent you. Come back and find me _only_ when you have the whole team with you. Tell them I said that’s an order. Good luck.” With those words, Bucky nodded silently and sped off toward the trees. He paused his escape to look back and watch as (y/n) managed to get a few good hits in with the agents surrounding her before Rumlow fires a small device at her, halting her movements instantly and sending her into unconsciousness. Her frame was carefully picked up by the agent standing by Rumlow and the man appeared to chuckle before instructing them to bring her back to the base. At this, Bucky was filled with worry. He knew what kind of man Rumlow was and feared for what would happen if he didn’t get to Steve in time. He turned back to the path and sped away from the base, hoping to whatever higher power was out there that (y/n) would be okay until he could get to his best friend.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When (y/n) awoke, she thought she was in a room with no light. Upon further inspection, she found she had a piece of cloth covering her eyes and her arms were tied behind her back, her legs tied together then pulled tight between the chair legs to prevent any movement. She attempted to flex her wrists, earning her only a painful tug from the rough rope that cut into her skin and an uncomfortable whimper to escape her lips.

At this sound, the cloth around her eyes was lifted away, causing her to blink from the harsh light suddenly entering her vision. When her eyes adjusted, she came face to face with Rumlow once again, and smug smirk on his face as he leant against the table behind him.  
“SunStar, I wonder how I did not recognise you sooner. You’re the only agent that has managed to evenly match me in a fight, and thus far the only one to beat me in one. You’d think I’d remember such a face.”  
“Well, you were never known for your intelligence Brock. I’m not surprised to be honest.”

That comment earned her a sharp slap to the face, snapping her head to the side with such ferocity it was a surprise she did not suffer from whiplash.  
“Where are the Avengers? Where is their new base?” Rumlow demanded, his hand poised to deliver another slap.  
“Sorry. Couldn’t tell you even if I wanted to. You see, I quit that team, didn’t really fit right for me, ya know? Left before I could get too attached to anyone.” Straight out lie. She had grown attached to everyone in that team, formed a special friendship with everyone, except the one she had really wanted to. Steve only saw her as an annoyance, meaning she didn’t get the chance to form anything special with him, though Hell she had wanted to.  
“I think we both know you’re lying agent. You see, the reason we finally figured out who you really were, was because of a little bit of research we did on you. Such a special friendship with that Assassin and the freak from our labs. And Captain America, well, that’s a whole different level of discussion isn’t it?”  
(Y/n)’s blood ran cold. He had her, trapped in her own words, and her own world about her regrets regarding Steve.  
“Aha, struck a nerve have I. Well, don’t you worry sweetheart. If you tell us what we want to know, we’ll let you go, and you can go back to your pathetic little family and pack your things, move on with your life like you talked about. All you have to do, is tell me what you know about the Avengers.” She spat in his face, allowing him to make his way close enough to take an effective shot. Rumlow wiped the saliva from his cheek, a dark scowl forming over his face that – although she didn’t show it – chilled (y/n) to her very core.  
“Very well, my dear, if you insist, lets do this the fun way.” He walked back to the table, pulling a knife from its surface and turning back to her. Things were about to get more complicated.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It had been two weeks since the heartfelt reunion between Steve and Bucky, and since then, the whole team had been searching desperately to find (y/n) and bring her home to them. They had started where (y/n) had helped Bucky escape, where she had been captured, but the base had been completely cleared out and wiped long before they had arrived. They had gone out on three rescue missions, following leads that they were almost certain was their missing teammate, but each trail had gone cold upon their arrival.

Steve was sitting in his room, pouring over papers and leads that could have even the slightest relevance to (y/n). He hadn’t slept that night, or the night before, only leaving to get some food before taking the meal to his room to resume his search.  
Bucky knocked briefly before opening the door to see his best friend reading a  file on their known HYDRA bases, his eyelids drooping and shadows under his eyes. The ex-assassin sighed before clearing his throat to get Steve’s attention.  
“Oh, hey Buck. I didn’t even hear you knock. What up? Anything new?” Bucky grimaced at the tired tone of the Captain’s voice, regretting that he had volunteered to bring this news to him. “Yeah, Steve, uh, we got something.” Steve’s eyes lit up the these words, but the shine disappeared just as quickly when he saw his best friend’s expression.  
“We’ve um- we’ve received a live stream request from (y/n)’s computer. They’re about to ring us, to discuss the terms of them handing her back over to us.”

Steve bolted up from the bed, sprinting out the door and down to the main debriefing room. When he reached the door, the call had just started to come through, the dull old fashioned ring tone setting everyone’s nerves on edge. Tony accepted the call, and a low growl erupted from Steve’s throat as Rumlow’s face covered the screen.

“Avengers! So nice of you to accept the call. I have someone here who’s been waiting to see you all. You could say, she’s been _dying_ to hear from you.”

The camera shifted, turning to move around Rumlow and focus on a beaten and battered form slumped over in a metal chair, breathing heavy and (h/l) hair hanging around their face. Rumlow entered the picture, approaching the figure and hooking a finger under their chin, tilting their head up to reveal their face. Wanda let out a sharp, distress-filled gasp, Natasha’s back stiffened, Clint, Sam, Rhodey and Tony growled. Bucky let out a soft, disbelieving “no”. Steve, his eyes widened and became glassy with tears he refused to let fall as he looked upon the beautiful face of (y/n) (l/n). She had cuts adorning her delicate (s/c) skin, bruises on her arms and face, and her outfit was torn to near shreds, singular threads being the only thing holding the material together and keeping her semi-decent. Looking at the screen in front of her, her eyes widened as she saw her friends staring back at her. She turned her gaze to Rumlow, who was still far too close for any of the Avengers’ comfort, least of all Steve.

“You promised Brock! You promised that you would leave them out of this! Turn that off!” Steve’s heart broke at her words. She had obviously agreed to some kind of torture in order to keep them all safe, to keep their whereabouts secret.  
“I was growing bored of that deal darling,” Rumlow taunted, “so I decided we should show your precious team what you’ve endured these past two weeks. Make sure they know _just how much_ they mean to you. Did you realise, Avengers? How much she loves you all that she would endure so much pain for you. Even you Captain, and if I’m not mistaken, you’re not exactly the nicest person when it concerns this lovely young lady, are you?”

“What do you want Rumlow?” Bucky growled out, low and dangerous in his tone. (Y/n) had believed in him more than once, on the Helicarrier when they had first met and she had opened his mind to the fact that he was fighting his best friend, and again when she had helped him escape, which was the whole reason she was in this mess displayed to him.

“Ah, the Soldier. How’s the freedom? Worth it I hope.”  
“Answer the question, wax-face.” Clint piped up, saving Bucky the overwhelming guilt he was no doubt feeling.  
“I just wanted to show you part of the new routine our darling (y/n) has become accustomed to over these last weeks. It’s quite the training regiment, I’m sure you’ll appreciate it Captain.”

Steve’s eyes narrowed as Rumlow finally left (y/n)’s side, only to return to the shot moments later with a syringe filled with a strange glowing blue liquid. Bruce inhaled sharply through his nose, catching the HYDRA commander’s attention. “Ah, I see Doctor Banner recognised this particular chemical brew. For those of you who don’t know what this is, we at HYDRA like to call it Fire-Ice. When injected into the blood stream, it creates the sensation of being encased in burning ice. This particular dosage doesn’t kill you, but oh boy does it have a nice sting to it.”

With those words, he injected the needle into the neck of a now weakly struggling (y/n), forcing the Avengers to watch as she tensed up; her breathing becoming laboured and small grunts escaping her. Her hands clenched into fists, and her back hunched forward. This result wasn’t enough for Rumlow, so he decided to fan the – almost literal – flames.  
“Come on my dear, let them hear you struggle. Let them hear those delicious screams you were letting out yesterday. Let them hear what your love for them has gotten you.”

Unable to conceal them any longer, (y/n) let out a cry of pain, her screams ripping at the hearts of every Avenger. Wanda buried her face into Vision’s chest, unable to bear watching the girl she had come to see as a big sister suffering the way she was. The rest of the team had turned away, Natasha covering her ears and squeezing her eyes shut. She had experienced the Fire-Ice concoction when she was in the Red Room, building up a near-immunity to the serum, but the memories of the countless hours of pain she had suffered began to bubble to the surface, making her heart hurt all the more. Bucky was furious, ready to kill Brock Rumlow with his bare hand, and not the metal one, but had to focus more of keeping a firm hold on his best friend who had sprung forward towards the screen, a feral sound ripping from his throat as he watched the girl he cared about being torn apart from the inside. Rumlow laughed from beside the camera, the picture suddenly cutting out, but the screams still ringing through everyone’s heads. Steve had all but collapsed in Bucky’s arms, sobs shaking his frame as the picture burned into his mind. Bucky pulled him out of the room after instructing FRIDAY to finish tracing the call like he had her do from the moment they picked up.

He dragged Steve to the living room of his floor, setting him on the couch and going to get his friend a glass of water.  
“We’ll get her back Steve, don’t worry. FRIDAY is tracing the call as we speak, knowing Rumlow he’s forgotten to turn off the computer. We’ll go bring her home, and she’ll be back in your arms by the end of the day.” “That’s the thing Buck, she was never in my arms to begin with. I let my pride and the fact that I’m this team’s leader get in the way, and the result I got was pushing her so far away she currently suffering for me when I don’t deserve anything from her.” Suddenly the glass was flung from his hand as he threw it at the wall. The resounding shatter was like a trigger for Steve, starting a fit of rage as he spoke, throwing things around his floor, shattering the near priceless artefacts Tony has furnished the area with. He paused as he picked up something familiar, a small glass figurine of an easel and paintbrush. Looking at the small sculpture, he calmed slightly, recounting the story behind it.  
“She gave this to me, on my birthday. Her first year in the Tower, we had been getting along okay, but she had gone on a mission the day before and wouldn’t be back till the following week. When I woke up that morning, I got birthday wishes from everyone and the typical Captain America merchandise, a little practical joke between everyone on the team. I didn’t get anything from her from the team, and I didn’t really expect anything, but when I went back up to my room, I found a small box of my coffee table. On it was a card, from her, wishing me a Happy Birthday and thanking me for being so welcoming while she got used to living with us all. When I saw this in the box, I just kinda knew she was something special, but then a week later she came home on a gurney in need of an immediate operation. She had gotten so hurt because she couldn’t use her powers quick enough, and so I got harsher with her. I didn’t want that to ever happen to her again, least of all because of me.”  
Steve buried his head in his hands, running them over his face. “Buck, some of the last things I said to her were that she didn’t belong with us, and that she should’ve started packing straight away and leave. I pushed her too far and without realising it, I pushed right into harm’s way.”

Bucky sat beside Steve, wrapping a comforting arm around his friend and giving him a firm side-hug squeeze. “You can make all that better punk. We’re going to get her, so suit up and get your Captain America pain in the ass persona going so we can kill those bastards for laying a hand on her.”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When the fight was over, Steve was already halfway to the cell (y/n) was being kept in. They hadn’t encountered Rumlow yet, but Steve had a pretty good guess where he was hiding, and couldn’t wait to get his hands on him. Or rather, his shield followed by Bucky’s metal arm and Natasha’s gun.

When he got to the door, it was already wide open, almost welcoming him to come in. He approached cautiously, but the idea of being careful was thrown out the window when he saw Rumlow standing there, holding a near unconscious (y/n) around her middle, keeping her upright and infuriatingly close to his body. A gun was held to her head, daring the Captain to take one wrong step.  
“I wouldn’t come much closer if I were you Captain. You won’t like what will happen if you do.” Steve froze in his steps, reluctantly putting down his shield and lifting his arms above his head as he was restrained by two agents. They pulled his hands behind his back and pushed him forwards, forcing him to his knees as Rumlow knelt to his level, still holding (y/n) close. Her eyes fluttered open at the movement, widening as she saw the man in front of her. “Steve? W-What? No, n-no Steve you-you have to get outta here. Fight back, get out of here now!”  
“Shut up!” Rumlow growled, jerking her slightly, her weak frame flinging forward then back, her head falling backwards against the man’s shoulder. Steve struggled against his captors, trying to get to (y/n) again. She was right in front of him, mere inches, but he couldn’t break free. “(Y/n), use your powers, c’mon, you can do this. Stay awake.”  
“She won’t be using those powers of hers, m’boy. You see, we injected her with a serum that weakens her powers to the point that if she tries to use them, it could kill her. It wears off of course, but at the moment she has enough running through her system for a good week at least. I honestly don’t think she has that long though, do you?”

Rumlow dropped (y/n), letting her fall to the floor like a ragdoll on her side, provoking a growl to come from a now viciously struggling Steve. Just as Rumlow lifted the gun to Steve’s head, a shot rang through the room, the (technically) older male falling to the ground with a bullet embedded in his head. A pair of sickening cracks followed, the men holding Steve falling to the floor with clearly broken necks. Steve rushed to (y/n), lifting her head gently and placing it on his lap as Bucky moved forward to check her wounds and Clint called for backup and a med team. (Y/n)’s eyes fluttered once more, turning her head up to look at Steve, a small smile gracing her dry, broken lips.

“Hey Rogers. Took you long enough huh? What? The seventy year-long nap wasn’t enough for ya?” Steve laughed through his tears, cradling her delicate body close. “Sorry (n/n), but you’re impossible to find. It’s like looking in a ‘Where’s Waldo?’ book.” She let out a breathy laugh. “(N/n)? I haven’t heard you call me that since before your birthday the first year I was in the Tower. I’ve missed hearing you say it.” She blinked slowly, wanting to process the last words she wanted Steve to hear from her. “Steve, I love you. I know I haven’t shown it over the last few years, but I really do. Ever since that day you took me out on your bike to show me the sights of New York. You seemed to know exactly what I wanted to see; a show, Times Square, and ice skating in the park. I just wanted to let you know, and that I didn’t mean anything I said to you out of hatred. I let myself believe that it would be easier to act like I hated you, than to love you but have you… hate… me…” her voice drifted off as the fatigue took over her, her eyes fluttering closed and prompting Steve to give her a shake, tears streaming down his face.  
“I love you too (y/n). Okay, you hear me babygirl? I love you. I never meant any of the things I said either. I would never want to hurt you. Baby, I need you to keep your eyes open for me. C’mon (n/n), just stay awake a little longer till we can get you to help. They’ll make you all better. Stay awake, stay with me doll, I need you.” Steve kissed her cheeks, brushing hair from her face. “C’mon sweetheart, I need you; your stubbornness, y-your sarcasm a-and, to hear your angelic voice belting out Disney and Show Tunes through the Tower for everyone to enjoy. Can-can you do that for me? Keep your eyes open doll, they’re almost here. Hold on (y/n).” She nodded her head slightly, signalling she was hearing him, but fading and struggling to fight much longer.

The medical team burst through the door, surrounding the couple on the ground and taking (y/n) out of Steve’s embrace. He moved away obediently, watching as they worked on setting up an IV drip and checking for all the damage she had endured.

“Please hold on. Don’t leave us. Don’t leave me.”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When (y/n) woke once again, she found herself in a stark white room. Looking around, she found she was in a medical bay, most likely the Tower. She pushed herself up, before feeling a foreign pressure on her right hand. She looked down to see a slumbering Steve, his hands wrapped around hers, his breathing even and his hair messy, like he had been running his hands through it incessantly. She smiles softly, reaching her left hand over to stroke his head and slowly rouse him. He blinked, disoriented somewhat, before settling his slightly blurred gaze on the girl beside him, her eyes _open_ , and a smile on her beautiful face.

“(Y/n), oh thank God! You’re awake!” He surged forward from his seat and crashed his lips to hers, pushing her back against the pillows and inciting a surprised squeak before she relaxed into the kiss. When they broke apart, (y/n) was stunned. “Wow,” she breathed, “and I thought I was just dreaming all those things you said. C’mere.” She shifted across her bed, leaving enough room for him to join her. He crawled on carefully, wrapping him arms around her gently and letting her head fall on to his chest. She shifted slightly and draped her arms across him, snuggling into him, placing one last kiss to his head before slowly falling back asleep. The gentle beat of Steve’s heart beneath her ear soothed her as she slept, letting Steve relax enough to eventually fall asleep himself, his head resting atop hers.

“Took them long enough.” Natasha chuckled from the door, nudging Bucky with her elbow. “Who would’ve thought it’d take all this to finally make them see what they had?” Bucky shrugged, “Steve’s always known. The punk’s just too stubborn to let his feeling overtake his mind.”  
They watched as the couple slept on, happy that they could now be happy. (Y/n) would need some time to heal, and both of them would be getting nightmares for months, but they knew, as long as they had each other, everything would be fine.


	4. She's So Gone - Bruce

Happy New Year my lovelies. I hope you all had a very safe and enjoyable night of celebration and that 2017 is absolutely spectacular for you all. This one is inspired by the song _She's So Gone_ from the Disney movie _Lemonade Mouth_. If you'd like to listen to it as you read, it's on YouTube.

 

y/f/n=your full name  
y/n=your name  
l/n=last name  
h/l=hair length  
h/c=hair colour  
s/c=skin colour  
f/c= favourite colour  
s/f/c=second favourite colour  
e/c= eye colour  
n/n= nickname

The small on-board diner was abuzz with light, music and colour as the Avengers sat crowded around the largest table in the room. They chatted excitedly amongst themselves, occasionally stopping to once again thank Tony for hiring out a small cruise ship for everyone at SHIELD involved in the attack on New York, just as a fun little holiday.  
The lights dimmed, and a voice sounded throughout the room. “Hello, and welcome everyone to the Spotlight Restaurant aboard the Sunset Cruise Ship. We’ve got a special performance lined up for you tonight, Mr. Stark was fortunate enough to secure a week of enjoyment for the whole ship. It’s my great pleasure to introduce to you, the star of the stage, Miss (y/f/n)!”

Bruce’s head shot up at the name, his sight moving from the drink in his hands to the woman walking onto the stage. (H/l), (h/c) hair, smooth (s/c) skin, and a dress of (f/c) and (s/f/c) hugging her figure as she strut to her place centre stage. She looked out to the crowd, a bright white smile adding an extra dose of shine to her presence onstage.  
“Hey there everyone, it’s so great to be here tonight. Before I start, I would just like to take the opportunity to thank my employer for the week, Mr Tony Stark, for giving me the pleasure of being able to perform for all of you this trip. I will only be performing a few songs each night, but rest assured if you do make any requests, I will do my best to make a special performance for you. This first song is a reflection of a time in my past, the person I used to be. I hope you all enjoy it.”

_Insecure_   
_In her skin_   
_Like a puppet, a girl on a string_

_Broke away_   
_Learned to fly_   
_If you want her back, gotta let her shine_

_So it looks like the joke’s on you_   
_Cause the girl that you thought you knew_

_She’s so gone_

Bruce watched as (y/n) sang her heart out on the stage. This confident young woman was a surprising change in Bruce’s mind, but a very pleasant one. He could still remember the timid young adult from his youth, afraid of singing in front of anyone, only being caught when she believed no one to be around.

_Here I am_   
_This is me_   
_And I’m stronger than you ever thought I’d be_

_Are you shocked?_   
_Are you mad?_   
_hat you’re missing out on who I really am_

_Now it looks like the joke’s on you_   
_Cause the girl that you thought you knew_

_She’s so gone_   
_That’s so over now_   
_She’s so gone_   
_You won’t find her around_

_You can look, but you won’t see_   
_The girl I used to be_   
_Cause she’s_   
_She’s so gone away, like history_   
_She’s so gone Baby this is me_

_Her voice was heavenly, just as he remembered it. Each note pitched to perfection, the power behind the song tenfold of what he had ever heard from her._

_You can look but you won’t see_   
_The girl I used to be_   
_Cause she_

_She’s so gone_   
_So long She’s so gone_

_Gone_

The restaurant erupted into applause, only dying down as the next song began to play. (Y/n) performed for another 20 minutes before leaving stage. When she reappeared, she had changed her clothes and was making her way towards the Avengers’ table.  
“Mr Stark, it’s an honour, really. Thankyou so much for the opportunity.” She smiled as she extended her hand, taking Tony’s in a firm handshake.  
“An honour to meet you too Miss (l/n). And please, call me Tony. I assume you already know everyone’s names?” Tony smiled, and (y/n) laughed.  
“Well, I’d surely hope so. Wouldn’t want to be the only person on the planet not to know the saviours of our world.” She laughed, smiling as she nodded towards each hero, “Captain Rogers, Agent Barton, Prince Thor, Agent Romanoff, -“  
“(Y/n).” Bruce spoke softly, rising to offer her his seat.  
“Doctor Banner.” She spoke, almost coldly, a short nod in his direction as she walked to the opposite end of the table and taking a seat between Clint and Thor. Tony smirked slyly at his friend.  
“You two know each other?” Bruce could hear the smug tone in his voice, and had to take a deep breath as he opened his mouth to speak. “For years, but we haven’t seen each other for-“  
“A lifetime.” (Y/n) interrupted. “I knew Doctor Banner before his accident. I worked with him for a short time. I was there when the accident occurred.”

The rest of the night was beyond awkward for Bruce, and very difficult to sit through. Tony had insisted the (y/n) join them for dinner, and to spend the rest of the voyage with them during meal times. She spent the entire night purposefully ignoring Bruce, only speaking to him when absolutely necessary, and even then they were short, sharp, and cold responses. The rest of the team could only watch and feel sorry for Bruce through their smiling facades. Something had happened in Bruce’s past, something that had made (y/n) very cold towards the doctor, and they were all determined to find out what.

\----------------------------------

The next morning, everyone had crowded around one of the tables up on the deck, diving  in to the smorgasbord of food that was served in the breakfast buffet. Bruce lazily pushed his food around as he stared at (y/n), watching her pile her plate with food and chat excitedly with a pair of fans that stood either side of her in the queue.

“What happened between you two, Big Green?” Tony asked suddenly, breaking Bruce out of his glazy stare.  
“Yeah man,” Clint chimed in, “you must’ve done something pretty terrible to get someone like (y/n) mad at you.”

Bruce sighed, he knew this was coming. He watched as (y/n) moved away from the Avengers table to sit with some other people who had attended the performance the night before, before his eyes swept the team in front of him and he began the story.  
“(Y/n) and I used to be best friends. We met in high school when I accidentally bumped into her in the hall between classes. She was so shy; she kept her head down and muttered an apology before rushing away, trying to look as small as possible. It took me a good three months to get her to talk to me before I could even really build a friendship with her. She was a bit of a science nerd, not as much as me, but it was enough to get her to feel more comfortable with me.  
We did everything together. She was always so timid, it was really an effort to get her out of the house, but I didn’t mind. She was always so kind, and her voice. My God, I mean you guys heard her last night, but she never really sang for me. I only found out she could sing when I accidentally caught her singing softly in the lab after College. She never liked singing in front of anyone, even after I caught her. Always so insecure about herself, nothing she ever did was good enough in her eyes. I’d promised her I’d never leave her alone, that she was perfect in her own beautiful way.” Tony and Clint whistled at this, a smirk on each of their faces.  
“Then the accident happened. I nearly destroyed Manhattan, and I thought I’d be outing her in too much danger if I stayed around her, so I left. In hindsight, it probably would have been better if I had left her a letter or something, explaining why I just left, but I didn’t want to risk her being in danger, so I left before she could find me and get hurt. I loved- _love_ her too much to have put her through that”

The table was silent. Thor was confused, not really having a full understanding of Bruce’s story yet, so he decided to keep quiet. Natasha was concerned for the doctor’s mental and emotional wellbeing, having experienced first-hand what the slightest slip of his emotions could bring about, but she had decided to put that aside for the moment in favour of keeping Tony and Clint quiet. To her surprise and horror, Steve was the one to speak up.  
“Jeez man, I suck with women, and even I know you screwed up. OW!” Steve jumped, knocking the table as he received a kick from the sharp toe of Natasha’s boot under the table. Bruce just scoffed.  
“Thanks Steve. I had no idea. Didn’t even notice.”  
There was such a level of sarcasm in his voice, even Thor realised that, as Bruce rose from his seat, it was best to leave him alone to his thoughts for the time being.

\----------------------------------------------

As Bruce exited the deck, heading back towards his room to read, he walked right into the woman who was occupying his thoughts. She let out an “ooff” as she stumbled, only to be caught by the doctor’s quick reflexes. She looked up, her apology dying on her lips as her (e/y) eyes hardened and her entire posture went rigid.  
“Doctor Banner. Apologies. Please, excuse me.” She pushed him away before turning on her heel, heading back towards her room with the sole intention of avoiding the man for the rest of the day, if not the trip.  
“(Y/n) please just let me explain, please.” Bruce followed after her, determined to at least have her understand.  
“There’s nothing for you to explain Doctor. It was a long time ago and I’ve moved on.”  
“You haven’t looked me in the eye since the moment we saw each other, you’re clearly not over what happened. And you haven’t even used my name once.”  
“And how could you possibly know whether I’m over something or not? When did you suddenly become an expert on who I am? You only know the girl you abandoned eight years ago, and let me tell you, I’m not that girl anymore. Haven’t been for a very long time.” She stepped into her room, fully expecting to close the door in his face and have him leave her alone. Bruce had other ideas, slamming his hand on the door and forcing his way into her room, watching as she continued to ignore him and move about the spacious cabin.

“Don’t bullshit me (n/n),” she flinched subtly at the use of the nickname he had personally reserved for her, “I still know you like the back of my hand, and you know it.” She disregarded him once again, moving to pick up the book from her dresser and rush to a ladies only lounge on the top deck.  
“Stop running away from me! Please, just talk to me (y/n). Please.” He had grabbed her wrist as she had moved around him towards the door, halting her movements and turning her to face him. Only then did she finally make eye contact with Bruce, fire and rage in her eyes. She flung her arm, releasing his grip as she slammed the book on her bed and squared her shoulders, her posture imposing, yet still just as cold a she had been towards him all trip, the anger and hurt radiating off her as she walked towards him.

“You LEFT me Bruce! Without so much as a goodbye, or any slight indication as to where you were going, _YOU LEFT ME!!!_ ”  
“I was trying to PROTECT you (y/n)! I didn’t know how dangerous the Other Guy could be and I didn’t want to put you in danger. I couldn’t have lived with myself if I had hurt you.”  
“And you thought I couldn’t have helped you through everything?! You weren’t the only one affected by that accident Bruce. I was there too, you know!”

Bruce froze, his eyes widening. He hadn’t thought about anyone having been affected by what happened, least of all his precious (y/n).  
“But…. how-how could you have…. you weren’t anywhere….”  
“Protective glass doesn’t do shit if it’s cracked Banner. So yeah, I got hit by a blast of the radiation, but it didn’t affect me like it did you. My voice became a weapon. I’m something like a siren now. Didn’t notice for a few months after you left, but whenever I started singing, people would start acting strangely, more zombie-like. And if I was mad at someone and sang to calm myself down, if the person was within earshot they would start doing things that were harmful to themselves. I got…. so scared, and I didn’t have anyone to turn to because…. Because my so-called _best friend_ had abandoned me before I could so much as _blink_.”  
Tears had started to spill over from her eyes, eight years’ worth of hurt and sadness finally having the chance to bubble over the cauldron’s edge.  
“I had to change myself, learn how to use my new power for good, instead of hurting someone whenever I was upset. Singing was my safe place, aside from you, and with you off God knows where, I couldn’t lose both the things that made me feel a sense of normalcy. I taught myself how to be more confident, and for a while I was recruited by SHIELD to do some undercover work as a singer working her way into the big leagues. I can turn my power on and off, focus it on one specific person or group, collect the information SHIELD needed. After a while, the singing gig became more of a passion, and I’ve been travelling around the world singing for people, crowds big and small.” She gave a small smile as she thought about all the places she had performed, shaking her head slightly.  
"I didn’t have the luxury to stay shy like you did Bruce. It made me weak, the perfect target for the wrong types of people, to be used like some sort of puppet. Now, my life is amazing. I get to go to the farthest corners of the Globe, singing for people around the world without having to worry about all the paparazzi and tabloids crap. I’m finally happy, and it’s not because of the person in my life I thought loved me for the shy, awkward little girl I used to be.”

Bruce stepped forward, lifting her head with his finger and gently cupping her face with his hand. He brushed his thumb over a falling tear and brought his face closer, their noses almost touching and their breaths mingling in the small space between them.  
“(Y/n), I still love you. I never stopped thinking about you. That shy, awkward little science nerd is the thing that drew me in, but the person you were beneath the surface; that kind, funny, dorky girl I came to know, _that’s_ who I truly fell for.” He leaned in to kiss her, only to have her turn her face to the side and pull away from him.

“The girl I used to be is gone Bruce. And no matter how and hard you look, you won’t find her. I left her behind a long time ago.”

With those words, she picked up her book, turned away, and walked out of her room, leaving Bruce standing there alone, a million different thoughts and emotion running around in his mind and heart.

_So long_   
_She’s so gone_

 

**May or may not be continued my lovelies. It is completely up to you. Leave a comment if you want it to be continued from where I’ve left off, and keep in mind that if it does, it will take a while. I’ve got a lot of stories to publish for you awesome readers.**


End file.
